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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30022659">Falling Again</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/honestmischief/pseuds/honestmischief'>honestmischief</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Marvel Cinematic Universe</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Couch Cuddles, Established Relationship, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Loki (Marvel), Protective Tony Stark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 22:54:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,386</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30022659</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/honestmischief/pseuds/honestmischief</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>All that Loki could do was close his eyes as he fell. </p><p>Suddenly, Loki could not feel the cool rush of air any longer. Something enclosed him, and he opened his eyes to find that he was not falling, but instead, suspended in the air and looking at his surroundings through a screen.</p><p>“Hello, Loki,” JARVIS said.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Loki/Tony Stark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>168</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Falling Again</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rabentochter/gifts">Rabentochter</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>HAPPY BIRTHDAY SESIL! I hope you're having the most wonderful birthday ever! Thank you for being such an amazing friend and for being someone who I can always count on to make me smile. ILY&lt;3</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Loki had never thought that he would be an Avenger. He was never the type of person to be inherently good, but he had his moments. Anthony had a way of keeping him grounded, even when he wasn’t trying. All Loki needed to see was the mortal’s smile to remember what his purpose was: to keep Anthony safe and not cause </span>
  <em>
    <span>too much </span>
  </em>
  <span>trouble. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Some trouble was okay. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When Odin had informed Loki that he would join the Avengers, he was angry. The trickster god had no desire to work with the team of heroes who had defeated him, but as he spent more time with Anthony, he realized that pretending to be a hero was worth it. Anthony was incredible, and Loki was grateful that the mortal saw something inside of him that made him worthy of his affection. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Loki knew that it was selfish, but his main goal as an Avenger was to keep </span>
  <em>
    <span>Anthony </span>
  </em>
  <span>safe. His lover was a self-sacrificing buffoon who would have probably gotten seriously injured without Loki’s assistance. The god had lost count of how many times he had used his seidr to heal Anthony, but he was happy to do so each time. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Loki did not enjoy going into battle. He had fought too many times in his life, but he had to go to protect Anthony. Besides, Odin required that Loki would protect Midgard as a condition for his release from his prison cell. Loki needed to keep himself out of his prison cell in order to stay with Anthony. He had no idea what he would do if he had to stay away from Anthony for long. The mortal quickly became someone important to him and he wouldn’t change it for anything. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>This time, the Avengers were required to battle Dr. Doom, who was not an actual doctor. He was a poor excuse for a sorcerer who used spells that Loki had learned as a child. However, it was more than most mortals were able to do, so it frequently took the entire Avengers team to fight him and his doom bots. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>If Thor wasn’t with him, Loki would have simply used his seidr to remove the threat. In the God of Thunder’s eyes, killing people was </span>
  <em>
    <span>wrong, </span>
  </em>
  <span>unfortunately. Loki believed that it was a necessary evil from time to time but once again, he did not want to do anything to be forced back into his cell. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dr. Doom brought more doom bots than usual, most likely knowing that Loki could easily use his seidr to terminate them. But this time, Dr. Doom improved his spells, making his bots more magic-resistant. It would take much more time and energy for Loki to use his own magic against them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eventually, there were too many for Loki to handle on his own, but the rest of the Avengers were elsewhere presumably fighting their own sets of doom bots. Loki cursed to himself as he stood on top of the Empire State Building. He should not have had the chance to be overpowered by mortal robots. It was absolutely pathetic and Loki felt ashamed of himself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Using his seidr, Loki sent blasts of energy at the doom bots, but they continued to crowd him until he reached the edge of the roof of the skyscraper. Loki looked down towards the ground which was hundreds of feet away. He could feel that his magic was drained and he was unsure how much longer he would last. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>All that Loki could do was close his eyes as he fell. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Suddenly, Loki could not feel the cool rush of air any longer. Something enclosed him, and he opened his eyes to find that he was not falling, but instead, suspended in the air and looking at his surroundings through a screen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hello, Loki,” JARVIS said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Loki was no longer falling. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?” Loki asked, hardly able to get the word out as he inhaled a shaky breath. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sir saw you fall and sent me to help,” the AI told him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The god had difficulty processing the situation due to the sound of his heart pounding in his ears. He was </span>
  <em>
    <span>falling </span>
  </em>
  <span>and Anthony had saved him. Loki wasn’t used to needing to be saved. This was a strange feeling for him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Anthony sent his suit to Loki to stop him from falling. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where is Anthony?” Loki asked frantically once he became fully aware of what happened. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>If Anthony sent him the suit, that meant that he was vulnerable as he continued to fight the doom bots. The Iron Man suit was a protective shell to prevent injury. Anthony was mortal, meaning that he was quite susceptible to injury, especially during battle. Loki could not leave him unprotected for long. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He is safe, Loki. This is a different suit that you are wearing. I am going to return you to the tower.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No!” Loki exclaimed. He could not leave Anthony to battle alone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sir insists that you return.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Perhaps if Loki’s magic was stronger, he would have transported himself to Anthony’s location. If Loki wasn’t trembling inside of the suit, he would have been able to protect his lover more efficiently. Instead, he stayed inside of the suit, helpless as JARVIS flew him back to the tower. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When he landed in the penthouse, the suit immediately opened and Loki took a couple of shaky steps out of it. Loki turned around and gasped when he saw the suit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This was not one of Anthony’s suits. It was made by him, but definitely not made for the inventor to wear. The suit was an elegant mixture of green and gold, with the signature blue arc reactor in the middle of the chest. Loki gently touched the shoulder of the suit, slowly tracing the metal, moving down the arm. It was smooth and left a chill to Loki’s fingertips after he pulled away. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ve finally met my favorite suit,” Anthony said, standing behind Loki. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have outdone yourself this time, Anthony.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Anthony gently held Loki’s hand, brushing his thumb over the back of it. Loki loved being close to Anthony and he suspected that he was able to tell. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come sit,” Anthony whispered as he guided Loki to the couch. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When they sat down, Anthony immediately wrapped his arms around Loki, pulling him close. It was an interesting reversal of what usually happened after their battles. Loki was usually the one who looked after Anthony, healing his injuries and relieving his muscle aches. Loki didn’t think that he had ever been the one who was held when they returned from their missions. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was interesting, to put it lightly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You fell. Are you okay?” Anthony asked, rubbing circles into Loki’s shoulder. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Loki told him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Anthony only stared at him. Loki’s lover was smart and could read him like a book. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am fine, my love,” Loki attempted to reassure him, pressing a soft kiss to his temple. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It must have brought up some old memories, Loki.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It definitely had. Loki’s hands were still trembling slightly and he would have been a fool to think that Anthony hadn’t noticed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It was not pleasant, but I was more worried about you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Anthony raised an eyebrow. “Yeah?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I did not realize the suit was not the one you had left for battle in. I thought you were alone.” The thought still brought an ache to Loki’s chest. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That was very sweet of you to worry, Lokes, but I’m always full of back-up plans.” Anthony squeezed his hand. “I got you.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Loki let out a content sigh as he relaxed into Anthony’s arms. He was incredibly lucky. He knew that he didn’t deserve someone like Anthony after everything he’d done, so every moment spent with him was one that Loki treasured. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was going to show you the suit soon. I finished it a couple of weeks ago,” Anthony said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It is magnificent. I am honored that you made such a glorious creation for me.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d do anything for you,” Anthony told him, which made Loki’s heart throb with adoration for him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As would I,” Loki said, even though he had told Anthony so many times in the past. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Loki was glad that he hadn’t fallen all the way down, and that Anthony was always there to catch him.</span>
</p>
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